"... Provide channels for root growth. The channels made by deep-burrowing earthworms are lined with readily available nutrients and make it easier for roots to penetrate deep into the soil.

If one could imagine this network of channels,, one could imagine air,,, being an important part of the soil...
One could think of these channels as openings in a sponge holding moisture inside the soil not just sitting on the top and growing in the soluble fertilizer sitting there...

If we could transport those visual images into the thinking of others,,, perhaps the irrigation practices that turn the top soil into Axle Grease could be more easily taken off the list of,,, Ol' Wives' Tales...

Believe it or not,,, Axle Grease Soil consistency,,, due to excessive irrigation does NOT benefit the grass...

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Now that I know that clay's texture(platelets) has nothing to do with water infiltration, percolation, or drainage,,, I wonder what does...
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I see very little evidence of any kind of earthworm in MY axle grease lawns,,, so aeration shouldn't bother anything there...
Perhaps aerating to bust up living black thatch would help feed the worm population and encourage growth,,, but I don't know that it would make a difference... Just a thought...
I think the idea of mechanical disturbance they meant,,, would be more like 'tilling',,, in that plant residues are removed from the surface...

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Now that I know that clay's texture(platelets) has nothing to do with water infiltration, percolation, or drainage,,, I wonder what does...
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Interesting academic take on what we have all been told since 1st grade.

I don't specifically disagree with anyone here but would point out that optimum watering practices have much to do with the underlying soil type - balanced with evapo-transpiration and the plants' changing use of water. I am not in favor of coddling plants if it only serves to make them less tolerant and more demanding. That said, its natural environment is an important consideration but allowances needs to be made for any unnatural demands that our care and use of grass present. The answer could me more water or more often - or to modify how we use and care for it. There are not too many one-answer questions in turf, as we all know.

Interesting academic take on what we have all been told since 1st grade.

I don't specifically disagree with anyone here but would point out that optimum watering practices have much to do with the underlying soil type - balanced with evapo-transpiration and the plants' changing use of water. I am not in favor of coddling plants if it only serves to make them less tolerant and more demanding. That said, its natural environment is an important consideration but allowances needs to be made for any unnatural demands that our care and use of grass present. The answer could me more water or more often - or to modify how we use and care for it. There are not too many one-answer questions in turf, as we all know.

One "Rule of Thumb" that works pretty good, that is sensible and easy to understand, even for those who know nothing of Botany and the intertwining factors of living things is:
"Water the soil, When it is Dry" and one could even put an addendum to that rule which states, Shut off the irrigation when the soil is too wet...

I suppose I could calculate the evapo-transpiration rate of my skin and breath to determine when I have my next glass of water, but I simply drink when I'm thirsty and I don't stop drinking until I'm rehydrated...

If LCOs have a difficult time figuring out when a lawn is thirsty, then just call it fungus and sell the client another app? or figure it out and inform the client that he has too little or too much water in the root zone???

It is just too easy to look at the soil and see a problem...

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Now that I know that clay's texture(platelets) has nothing to do with water infiltration, percolation, or drainage,,, I wonder what does...
*

One "Rule of Thumb" that works pretty good, that is sensible and easy to understand, even for those who know nothing of Botany and the intertwining factors of living things is:
"Water the soil, When it is Dry" and one could even put an addendum to that rule which states, Shut off the irrigation when the soil is too wet...

Yes and perhaps others that say:
Sandy soils dry out faster than heavy soils
You cannot simply water sandy soils longer because, once wet, the excess water drains through
When you have layering in soils with a heavy soil on top of a sandy one, water won't pass through to the sand until the top layer is saturated
It's ok to water ahead of what you believe will be hot dry weather rather than wait for wilt or worse
Some people are only allowed to water on even says, some are odd (which are you)
Me, I'm an "even" so I get screwed everytime a month has 31 days
Keep an umbrella in the truck in case it rains